A new exhibition at The Herb Lubalin Study Center at The Cooper Union will explore the graphic world of pharmaceutical design. Work by Andy Warhol, Lester Beall, Will Burtin and Herb Lubalin features in the show, which charts design for drugs from the 1940s to the present day. Here, curator Alexander Tochilovsky shares his thoughts about what he sees as a ‘golden age’ in US pharmaceutical design, the 1940s and 50s.

Above: the walk-in Cell exhibition, a million times larger than life, designed by Will Burtin for UpJohn. From Design and Science: The Life and Work of Will Burtin, reviewed by Eye art director Simon Esterson in Eye no. 68.